Joseph koehler



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIOE.v

JOSEPH KOEHLER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND HEINRICH SALTMANN, OF SAME PLAGE.

HEAD-GEAR FOR STOPPING- RUNAWAY HORSES.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 27,952, dated April 17, 1860.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH KOEHLER, of the city and State of New York, have invented, made, and applied to use certain new and useful Improvements in Safety Head-Gear for Stopping Horses; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact` description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawing, making part of this specification, wherein- Figure l is a side elevation of a horses head with my gear attached thereto, and Fig. 2, is a front view of said gear. The other figures are represented in larger size, and similar marks ofwreference denote the same parts.

My said invention consists in a means for blinding the horse by pulling on a check rein, so that by covering his eyes he will be unable to see the way and will immediately stop if he is restive or has run away, and by bringing the blinders close to the eyes a horse is entirely safe if standing still even without being tied up. Should the operation of the blinders not be sufficient to check the horse in case of running away, an additional pull on the same check rein, brings a compressing operation on each side of the nostrils that checks the admission of air and overpowers the animal until, if continued, he will fall down from the sense of suffocation.

My improvements it will be seen are applicable to horses for preventing them being frightened under any circumstances, either while standing still or in passing railroad trains, in preventing horses shying at obstructions, or articles near them; also in preventing horses starting before the driver is fully seated; also in preventing fright in case of fire, or in passing fires: And not' only will my safety head gear act to prevent fright or restiveness, by covering the eyes, but in case the same does not quiet the animal, it may be entirely subdued by pressure on the sides of the nose. Y

Having thus stated the general objects of my invention and the effects produced thereby, I proceed to set forth the manner of constructing my safety head gear.

In the drawing a, is a curved head plate extending down in the form of metallic straps or side pieces to the bit f and to accommodate horses with different lengths of heads. The straps a, a, are to be formed as at a, to slide on each other and attached at the desired length by -a screw bolt, or its equivalent.

b, is a strap across the horses nose which I prefer to be of metal to steady the other parts, and the ends thereof pass into slots in a., and are retained by a spring 2, and point entering a hole in the strap 6.

c, is a leather strap to buckle beneath the horses jaw; and CZ, is a strap buckled around the neck.

e, is the front strap across the horses head retained in position by the point of the spring l, entering holes in the strap e.

g is the eye shade or blinder attached to the metal side piece a, by a vertical pin 3, so that the shade can be turned against the eye, or removed therefrom, the shade being formed concave so as only to touch the parts surrounding` the eye, the eye itself and the lid being free to move.

L, is a check rein that usually hangs loosely and the end is fastened at some point accessible to the driver.

vl is a small collar through which the rein passes and divides at the eye Z, forming two cords or straps m, one on each side of the head, connecting to the eye 5, that projects from the slide rod n.

The straps m, may be adjusted in length by the buckle 6, and the collar i, may be adjustable on the rein h, and clamped thereto by a screw.

7 is a spring forcing the slide a, down; 8 is an incline on a branch of the rod a, and 9 is a second incline in the opposite direction.

When the collar z', is in the eye la, as shown, the blinders g stand away from the eyes in the usual manner, but on pulling the check rein L, so that the collar is drawn out and takes against the face of 7c, (the rein dropping into a notch in 70,) the incline 9 is drawn away fromunder the arm of g, and the incline 8, swings the blinders g close up around the horses eyes, effectually preventing him from seeing. If this operation is sufficient to check the horse, upon releasing the check rein the collar z', slides into the eye 7c, and the blinders are pressed away from the eyes by the inclines 9, and springs 7. These inclines 8 and 9, are shown in larger size in Fig. 3. Should it be necessary to use other means than the blinders to check the horse, I apply the compressing pads 0, o, that are fitted to move horizontally on vertical pins 11, and I continue the rods n, and have a second set of inclines l2, 13, so that upon pulling the check rein z., the blinders g, g, are first closed and on continuing the pull the blinders still remain closed but the incline l2 presses the pad 0 harder and harder onto the horses nose above the nostrils until subdued the horse stands entirely still. Upon releasing the pull on the check rein It, the incline 13, forces the pad 0, away from the nose and the horse is relieved.

The parts of the rod n., are to be connected by a slide and binding screw so as to be lengthened as desired. The slides and springs &c. may be highly finished and ornamental, or they may be inclosed by a cover of leather, metal, hard rubber, or other material.

In F ig. 4, I have represented the cover p,

that may be used over the parts as shown on one side of the head gear Fig. 2.

The parts of my head gear may be made of brass, steel, or other metal; and hard rubber, leather, or other material may be used Whenever available.

The peculiar benefits of my safety head gear Will be apparent from the foregoing description and need not be repeated.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is- The combination of the blinders g, compression pads o, sliding rod n and inelines with the check rein (h, 71%,) and collar z', substantially as set forth.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my signature this ninth day of February J. KOEI-ILER. Witnesses:

LEMUEL W. SERRELL, THos. GEO. HAROLD. 

